Winnipeg Police Board hears allegations of racial profiling, checkstops

In measured but passionate tones,leaders froma community coalition calling for increased police accountabilitylaid out accusationsThursday of racial profilingby the Winnipeg Police Service,random checkstops and carding of members from visual minority communities.

The allegations from thePolice Accountability Coalition came during a meetingof the Winnipeg Police Board on Thursday, and were accompanied by demands for more civilian oversight of the city's police service, a cut to itsbudget and an end to the use of certain tactics.

There was also a call for theintroduction of body cameras for officers.

The newly formed Police Accountability Coalitionrepresents agroup of more than 90 Winnipeg community organizations who have come together to affirm their support of the Black Lives Matter movement, according to a Thursday news release.

Coalition member Dorota Blumczynska, who is also the executive director of theImmigrant and Refugee Community Organization of Manitoba (IRCOM), said she and some of her staffmet last year with Winnipeg police Chief Danny Smyth, senior officers and regular members of the WPS.

The officers weretold"two young Black leaders"at IRCOMhad beenarbitrarily stopped by police, asked for identification, and told by officers "they couldn'tpossibly own the vehicle they were driving," Blumczynskasaid.

They were stopped "not once, not twice, but multiple times."

Those were IRCOM staff members whodrove kids to sports and community centres, and facilitated nutrition programs, she told the police board.

She said the response she got was that "carding was a problem in Toronto we don't do that in Winnipeg," and that Winnipeg police have policies against arbitrary stops.

She wants to see examples of policy review or changes as a result of the complaints she heard.

"I would like to hear what actions took place,"Blumczynskasaid. "What we had to say [to police] was left at the door when the service left the building."

Louise Simbandumwe, theco-director of Supporting Employment and Economic Development (SEED)Winnipeg, told the police board her organization tries to avoid calling police when it encounters a difficult situationwith a client or at its offices.

"Sad to say, over the years my trust [in the police] has been eroded," she said.

Simbandumwe told the board police officers are not equipped to de-escalate situations involving problems like mental health issues.

"There is cynicism out there," that she and other SEED staff members have heard about police conduct, she warned the board.

"Thereis mistrust out there."

Police chief denies profiling, checkstops

Police Chief Danny Smythtold reporters after the meeting people were "entitled to their views,"but denied accusations of racism, or use oftactics such as checkstops or profiling by Winnipeg police.

"I don't agree with their views. We are part of the community. We've been part of the community from the inception. We are partners in the community," Smyth said.

He acknowledged he'd heard the concernsBlumczynskaand her staff had brought forward, but felt the service had reached out to IRCOM appropriately. He did, though, open the door to further investigation by an outside body.

"If that means a formal investigation by [the Winnipeg police] professional standards [unit], or that means [we need to] determine where our communication broke down, that's what those relationships areintended to do."

Responding to the Police Accountability Coalition's suggestion of a 10 per cent budget cut for the police service, Smyth said that would force a serious conversation about what parts of the service should go.

"It is about cutting positionsso do we want to give up traffic?Do we want to give up investigations? Do we want to give up community support?"

The police chief was also lukewarm on the idea of putting body cameras on officers, saying he was "open to the idea" but warned it would be expensive (perhaps costing $8 million) and wouldn't offer a "panacea" to concerns about the activities of police on patrol.

Privacy issues and other concerns could limit what the cameras captured, he said.

Police board chair Markus Chambers, who is relatively new to the role, accepted the submissions from thePolice Accountability Coalition as concerns to take seriously.

"If the community is saying these events are happening, we have to take that as credible information, and have to respond in a meaningful way," theSt. Norbert-Seine River councillor said.

Chambers was cautious on a 10 per cent budget cut for the WPS, however, saying rising crime stats, a methamphetamine and opioid crisis, and other issues would make that kind of reduction a challenge.

Winnipeg Police Board hears allegations of racial profiling

4 years ago

Duration 2:49

The allegations from the Police Accountability Coalition came during a meeting of the Winnipeg Police Board on Thursday, and were accompanied by demands for more civilian oversight of the city's police service, a cut to its budget and an end to the use of certain tactics.

For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of. You can read more stories here.